[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 103 (Friday, May 27, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Page 30938]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-13270]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-9312-2]
The Effects of Mountaintop Mines and Valley Fills on Aquatic
Ecosystems of the Central Appalachian Coalfield andA Field-Based
Aquatic Life Benchmark for Conductivity in Central Appalachian Streams;
Release of Final Reports
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: EPA publically released on April 13, 2011, two final
scientific reports assessing the environmental and water quality
effects of mountaintop coal mining on Appalachian streams. Both
reports, prepared by EPA scientists in the Agency's Office of Research
and Development, were strongly endorsed by EPA's Science Advisory Board
following an extensive independent peer review. The reports provide
valuable scientific information for use by Federal and state agencies
responsible for the review of surface coal mining operations under the
Clean Water Act. The two reports, entitled The Effects of Mountaintop
Mines and Valley Fills on Aquatic Ecosystems of the Central Appalachian
Coalfields (EPA/600/R-09/138F) and A Field-based Aquatic Life Benchmark
for Conductivity in Central Appalachian Streams (EPA/600/R-10/023F) are
available via the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/ncea.
DATES: These two reports were posted publically on April 13, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Both reports are available primarily via the Internet on the
National Center for Environmental Assessment's home page under the
Recent Additions and Publications menus at http://www.epa.gov/ncea. A
limited number of paper copies are available from the Information
Management Team, NCEA; telephone: 703-347-8561; facsimile: 703-347-
8691. If you are requesting a paper copy, please provide your name,
your mailing address, and the document title.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information, contact
the National Center for Environmental Assessment; Michael Slimak;
telephone: 703-347-8524; or e-mail: slimak.michael@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Key Conclusions
The Effects of Mountaintop Mines and Valley Fills on Aquatic Ecosystems
of the Central Appalachian Coalfields
Springs, and ephemeral, intermittent, and small perennial
headwater streams are permanently lost with the removal of the mountain
and from burial under mining waste;
Concentrations of major chemical ions (a measure of
salinity) are persistently elevated downstream of mining operations;
Degraded water quality reaches levels that are acutely
lethal to standard laboratory test organisms;
Selenium concentrations are elevated, reaching
concentrations that have caused toxic effects in fish and birds; and
Aquatic communities downstream of mining operations are
consistently degraded.
A Field-Based Aquatic Life Benchmark for Conductivity in Central
Appalachian Streams
Consistent with longstanding EPA methods and using site
specific stream data in West Virginia and Kentucky, EPA determined that
conductivity (dissolved salts) levels below 300 [micro]S/cm are
generally associated with healthy aquatic communities; and
The Report demonstrates that elevated conductivity (a
measure of salinity) is the factor most directly responsible for the
loss of stream life in Appalachian streams.
Comments were solicited on the drafts of both reports beginning in
April 2010. Those comments received were provided to an expert peer
review panel of the Science Advisory Board (SAB). The SAB panel held a
public meeting to review the draft reports from July 20-22, 2010. The
SAB's peer review reports were transmitted to the EPA Administrator on
March 25, 2011, and are available at: http://yosemite.epa.gov/sab/sabproduct.nsf/WebReportsLastMonthBOARD/ACD3A1AF5C7138E785257625006C891E?OpenDocument&TableRow=2.3#2, for the
MTM-VF Effects Assessment; and http://yosemite.epa.gov/sab/sabproduct.nsf/WebReportsLastMonthBOARD/984D6747508D92AD852576B700630F32?OpenDocument&TableRow=2.3, for the
Conductivity Report.
Dated: May 19, 2011.
Darrell A. Winner,
Acting Director, National Center for Environmental Assessment.
[FR Doc. 2011-13270 Filed 5-26-11; 8:45 am]
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